The Scavenger's code

"That's unheard of!" one of the generals spoke.

General Garry shifted his eyes to look at the general who had uttered the words and found it was a Chinese man dressed in a cyber combat suit. On his left chest were his name and rank: Ching Ba, S-rank. The Chinese man looked exhausted, his background clearly depicting that he was outdoors in a snowy field, while he himself was standing amidst large armored vehicles currently moving forward.

"It was unheard of until now. As you well know, the diamond in the rough is no mere human—it is the product of a human and a monster bearing a child."

This time, the Supreme General was the one to voice his concern.

"I understand that, General Garry, but to slay a B-ranked monster with his bare hands without even activating the abilities he has... it's just concerning."

General Garry clenched his fist behind his back and spoke.

"Supreme General, I can assure you we have everything under control, and if things escalate, we have measures in place to restrain the diamond."

The Supreme General nodded.

"Well, Generals, I wish you luck on your missions. I will observe the diamond from a distance." The Supreme General cut the video conference.

General Garry was left in the dark room alone, the once-lit screen now switched off. He sighed and walked toward the exit.

---

Zain was on a cyber train. Seated next to him was General Garry, who was currently reading a novel. Zain was astonished when he was told that the novel the general was reading cost ten million crypto points. Zain had learned a lot from General Garry, who turned out to be a surprisingly cool person by Zain's standards.

It had been three days since he completed the test that General Garry had given him, and they were now on their way to the Academy. Zain had asked so many questions, but General Garry answered them all. Zain now knew what money actually was, which solidified his desire to live the good life he had always dreamed of.

He had also been taught the ranks and what ranks the monsters had, apart from trivial questions such as why the general bought physical novels when he could read them online.

General Garry answered, "It's because holding the paper thing is way better than scrolling through air." He lingered for a few seconds and added, "Besides, it's the best way to spend crypto points on knowledge."

The last part really caught Zain's attention, and later, he asked,

"General Garry, are you telling me the more knowledge I have, the easier it will be to achieve my dream?"

"Of course, boy!" the general proudly spoke. "Oh, look, we've arrived at the train station."

They had arrived in the Academy territory. The Academy was the largest on the continent; hence, its premises were as vast as a province. When they got off the train, they took the elevators to the surface.

Zain's mouth was left wide open when he saw the bustling streets of Academy City. He couldn't believe it. The air was easier to breathe, the sky clear enough to see the stars, and everything looked bright.